(Source: Viet Nam Social Security)

The Vietnam Social Security (VSS) will continue ensuring social and health insurance policies for workers and people in 2018, fine-tuning management processes and improving operating efficiency, aiming to fulfill 11 key tasks. 

First, the VSS will continue achieving goals set in Resolution No.21-NQ/TW of the Politburo, review the five-year implementation of Resolution No.21-NQ/TW of the Politburo and set tasks till 2020. 

Second, it will continue with a plan to implement Directive No.34/CT-TTg dated December 26, 2016 from Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, while directing its municipal and provincial chapters to expand social and health insurance coverage, especially targeting voluntary social insurance participants and health insurance participating households. 

Third, the VSS will strengthen inspection over units that delay paying social, health and unemployment insurance, promptly deal with legal violations in social, health and unemployment insurance and work closely with units to collect debts of social, health and unemployment insurance. 

Fourth, it will strengthen examinations on the electronic health insurance monitoring system and work with the health sector to control costs in medical stations. 

Fifth, it will cooperate with the ministries of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, Public Health and Finance to refine draft legal documents regarding social, health and unemployment insurance to submit to concerned authorities. It will also direct municipal and provincial chapters to abide by new regulations in the field. 

Sixth, further attention will be paid to raising public awareness of insurance, targeting voluntary social insurance participants, health insurance participating households and workers in industrial and processing zones. 

Seventh, it will continue updating archives on households and completing the hand-over of social insurance books to workers and piloting the use of e-cards in place of social insurance books and health insurance cards. 

Eighth, the VSS will speed up technological adoption in its activities, refine software and archives and expand the supply of public services online. 

Ninth, it will continue renewing the collection of voluntary and household health insurance payment, thus ensuring full benefits of social, health and unemployment insurance participants. 

Tenth, more efforts will be made to step up administrative reform. 

Finally, the sector will raise capacity and the sense of responsibility of officials and cadres, especially those directly working with workers, businesses, organisations and the people. 

A highlight of the VSS in 2017 was administrative reform and IT application in professional activities, including refining software on collecting payment of and issuing social insurance books and health insurance cards, inaugurating and running the IT operating centre and the consumer services centre, clearing up queries about social, health and unemployment insurance, reclaiming hundreds of billions VND in social insurance debts and reducing social insurance debts to below 3 percent from 3.7 percent in late 2016.

International Cooperation Department